While I Was Gone
by tigerfan21
Summary: Jay returns home to find an intruder in his apartment. Who is it and why are they here?
1. Chapter 1

Jay Halstead slowly shuffled up the stairs to his apartment. Some days he questioned why he bothered to keep the third floor walk up he had briefly shared with Erin Lindsay before their relationship dissolved and she disappeared. But with decent rent and his stuff already moved in, it didn't make sense to leave. The first few months were tough with the constant reminders of his life with Erin, but lately he'd been so worn out. All he did was work, eat, come home and sleep.

Looking down flipping through his keys for the correct one, Jay didn't notice that his front door wasn't latched until he stood right in front of it. Tiredness gone, he felt his cop sense tingle. Gun out, he carefully opened the door. The coats by the door were knocked down, the end table slightly out of place as though someone had bumped it hard. Further along, a bright red bloody handprint on the back of the couch had him advancing faster through the apartment.

Living room clear, kitchen clear, and bedroom clear, Jay turned on the bathroom. With a deep breath in, Jay pushed the door open with a clear "FREEZE". The person standing at the sink stopped moving except for the uncontrolled shivering of her body. She had stringy, bubble gum pink hair and a skeletal frame that was barely clothed even though the fall temperatures were now dipping into the 50s at night.

"Slowly now," he commanded, "turn around and put your hands where I can see them."

"Jay." The strained word escaped the intruders mouth. Slowly she turned around to face him. The whole front of her shirt was covered and blood and both hands were applying pressure to a bleeding wound on her left side.

Jay holstered his gun but continued to stare at the woman in disbelief. It had been six months since Erin Lindsay disappeared to New York City without a trace. No calls, no texts, no communication. Last time he asked, Voight hadn't heard from her either but he didn't seem to be concerned about it. Yet here she was, standing in what had once been their bathroom, bleeding profusely.

"No hospitals." was all she managed to gasp out before fainting into his arms.

 **Author's Note: Hey guys! Welcome back! This story is going to be a few chapters. I have a vision for the next chapter but am not sure where it will go after that, so it may be a while between updates. I hope you enjoy it!**


	2. Chapter 2

Erin Lindsay felt herself floating in the fuzzy area between asleep and awake. Based on the brightness of the sunlight on the other side of her eyelids, it was probably time to open her eyes, yet she was content to stay as she was. However, instead of melting back into dream world, her instincts set her nerves on edge. Someone was in the room with her muttering under their breath.

Staying as still as possible to not alert the unidentified person to the fact she was awake, Erin began to take stock of where she was and how she felt. She was sore all over, but the worst pain centered around her left side. She also had a roaring headache and her mouth felt as though she'd been chewing on cotton balls, But she was also warm, comfortable, and on a soft bed; three were things she hadn't felt in months.

The more awake she became, the more aware of her surroundings she became. Even with her eyes closed she could tell she was safe. The bed smelled familiar although her still fuzzy feeling brain couldn't quite place it.

"Erin, if you're awake, I really need you to open your eyes." Crap, she'd been discovered. Maybe if she stayed still enough, she could fool this person into thinking she was still asleep.

"Come on, Erin, it's important." With a deep inhale of the reassuring scent of the sheets, Erin slowly opened her eyes to be greeted by the smiling face of Will Halstead.

"Well, I'm glad to see I didn't kill you." He said with a chuckle.

Erin couldn't resist the amusement on his face. It brought a small smile to her own.

"Hey Will".

A quick glance around confirmed what her other senses already told her, she was in bed at what had once been her and Jay's apartment. Erin made a move it sit up but was immediately stopped by a sharp pain in her side and a firm hand on her shoulder from Will.

"Don't sit up yet Erin, I had to put quite a few stitches in you last night and I'd really prefer it if you didn't rip any of them."

"What are you even doing here?" she questioned.

"I could ask you the same thing," he countered. Her glare drew another chuckle from him. "Jay called me. He was super cryptic and panicky on the phone but now I understand why. Your injuries are serious Erin. Aside from the stab wound that I stitched up for you, you're clearly malnourished, and I think your ribs may be broken on the right but I can't tell without an x-ray. I really would feel better if we took you to Chicago Med for a full work up."

"No, no hospitals."

"Erin…"

"No, Will, I can't."

Their staring contested ended with a big sigh from Will as he turned to get a few pill bottles from his bag. "I need you to take these now," he said, handing her a small collection of pills. "A pain killer, an antibiotic, and a vitamin for now. I'll leave the bottles and the instructions. I want you to take them on a regular schedule until we can do a better work up on you."

Erin took the pills with no protests. The cool water felt good against her lips and dry mouth. She could already feel her brain getting fuzzy from the effort of their conversation and now the pain meds. Will saw this too and began to collect his stuff.

"I'll be back to check on you tomorrow morning when I get off shift. Until then, try and get as much rest as you can and don't move too much."

Erin nodded slowly, already feeling sleep wash over her. Snuggling into the pillow which she now recognized as smelling like Jay, she barely heard the door shut behind Will before she was asleep.

A few hours later, Erin stirred slightly in her sleep. Suddenly, her senses became acutely aware that someone else was in the room. Her whole body tensed, concentrating on the sound of the breathing. Based on what she could hear, the person was standing by the door, just a few feet from her. Mentally she calculated the best way she could land a hit without doing too much damage to her already injured body. But before it came to that, she heard the gravelly voice of Hank Voight.

"Relax kid, it's just me. Go back to sleep. I'll be here when you wake up."

The safety blanket of knowing Voight was keeping an eye on her lulled her back to sleep.

 **AN: First, let me just say, I have been absolutely overwhelmed with the response this story has gotten. No need to worry, there are at least 2 chapters (if not more) left.**


	3. Chapter 3

The next time Erin Lindsay woke up, two things were immediately apparent: she felt safe and she really had to pee.

Slowly opening her eyes, Erin saw that the sun had gone down but the bedside lamp was on. Sitting in a chair near the night stand reading a book was the source of her safe feeling, Hank Voight. The last time she remembered waking up with Hank watching over her, she was 17 and had emergency surgery to remove her appendix. She had been so scared of being in the hospital but didn't want to appear weak by saying so out loud. Still, Hank just seemed to know and barely left her side the whole time she was in the hospital. She never got particularly good at hiding her true feelings from him.

"Hey, kid. I'm glad to see you awake." Sometime while she was lost in her memory, Hank had noticed she was awake and moved to sit on the edge of the bed. "Here, it's time for you to take these," he said as he handed her two of the pain killers and a glass of water. Erin gingerly sat up and took the offered medicine.

Once she finished the glass of water, Erin spoke. "It's good to see you too, Hank, but how did you know I was here?"

"When you showed up like you did, Jay panicked. He called Will first because you needed the medical attention, then he called me."'

"Too many people know I'm here now, it's not safe for you."

Hank leveled her with a stare. "Erin, you well know that I can take care of myself, but I can't help you until I know what's going on."

Erin let out a big sigh. As much as she wanted to keep everyone else safe, she knew that if anyone would be able to help her out of the situation she was now in, it would be Hank Voight.

"Okay, I'll fill you in. But first I really, really need to pee."

Hank chuckled at the embarrassed look on her face. "Come on, let's get you up." With that, Hank carefully helped her stand up out of bed. Erin discovered that someone had dressed her in a way too big pair of sweatpants that must belong to Jay and a large t-shirt. Someone, Jay if she had to guess, had even taken the time to put socks on her feet which she appreciated since they were always cold. Using Hank for support, she managed a slow shuffle to the bathroom. When they got to the door, Hank made a move like he planned to help her but Erin stopped him.

"I've got it from here," she said with a small smile. "I'll yell if I need anything."

"Okay, but if you're not out in 5 minutes I'm coming for you."

With a pat on his arm, Erin shut the door. Moving slowly and carefully, she was able to use the toilet and stand back up without too much pain. She was now standing at the sink washing her hands. A quick glance at the mirror confirmed she looked as crappy as she felt. The circles under her eyes were darker than the last time she'd seen her reflection, her skin had a grayish tint going, and god she hated the pink hair. She made a mental plan to dye it as soon as possible. Realizing Hank would soon be coming to check on her if she didn't hurry up, Erin left the bathroom and started a slow shuffle to the living room.

Once she turned the corner, she froze. Hank was on the couch waiting for her, but what gave her pause was seeing Jay for the first time in 6 months. The moment before she passed out, with his gun trained on her didn't really count. The two men were engaged in a hushed conversation and did not immediately notice her presence. It shouldn't have caught her off guard that he was there, this was his apartment after all. As she moved closer, Jay noticed her approach and the conversation between him and Voight stopped immediately. Hank stood to help her sit, then took the blanket from its place on the back of the couch and tucked her in before sitting beside her.

The three of them sat there in silence for a few long minutes. Erin could feel their eyes on her even though her eyes were on her own hands which were nervously fidgeting in her lap. She knew they were waiting for her to speak, but she had no idea where to start. At the sound of Jay's voice, her eyes shot up to meet his.

"Fine, I'll address the elephant in the room… what happened?"

 **AN: Alright, it's all set up now. The next chapter we will find out where Erin's been, what's happened the last 6 months, and how she turned up in Chicago. The chapter after that we will finally get to a lot of interaction between Jay and Erin.**


	4. Chapter 4

Meeting Jay's eyes almost hurt more than the injuries she had sustained over the last 24 hours. Instead of the light emotions and love she'd grown used to during their relationship, all she saw was guarded mistrust. The same mistrust was evident in his closed off body language; he sat back in the chair as though he didn't care but his arms were crossed in front of his chest to keep her locked out. She knew she couldn't look at him and manage to get her story out, so her eyes returned to her hands which were still fidgeting with the blanket.

"When I left 6 months ago, it wasn't exactly voluntary. The FBI had my mom implicated in that drug case we were working. They also had been collecting dirt on our team while trying to find information to lure me in. I was given the ultimatum: join them in New York as a member of their team or they were going to put my mom away and take down the Intelligence unit. I was done with cleaning up after my mom but I couldn't let them destroy the unit, my real family. And with everything else that was happening here, the choice seemed easy at the time.

"During the first month there, I was in training 12 hours a day. I decided that despite the circumstances leading to me being in New York, the job deserved a fair shot. The second month it became clear they were going to need to send someone deep undercover to break up the sex trafficking ring they were going after. My hard work during training and my history with these types of cases combined with being a new face made me perfect for this op.

"Two of the girls who had gone missing attended the same school. Once all the staff was cleared we set up an office in the basement. My hair was dyed to make me look high school age and I was put under as a student. Each day I would show up for school and spend the day working in the basement. During the afternoons I would wait tables at a local diner near where another couple girls had gone missing. Apparently I played the part well because about two months in I was taken as I left work.

"From that point on, I was deep under but had a tracker and a mic on at all times. The things I saw, some of the things I had to do, were horrible but I knew my team was gathering more and more information. It's amazing the amount of things people will say in front of you when they think you're worthless.

"I was moved around a lot until eventually one of those moves took me and a group of other girls here to Chicago. I'm still not sure what went wrong last night. The usual guy put me in a car but instead of going to meet a client, I was taken to an alley and attacked. I'm not sure if my cover was blown or if my time was just up, but either way I can't stay here. If they find out I'm not dead, they'll hunt me down. I can't put you in danger like that."

By the end of her story, Erin was crying lightly. Jay was no longer sitting but pacing restlessly behind the couch. About halfway through, Hank had covered her hands with his own, both in a show of support and to keep her from picking a hole in the blanket.

When Hank spoke, his voice was even rougher than normal with emotion. "You're crazy if you think we're letting you go anywhere."

Erin knew this would be his response. She resigned herself to the fact that she would be in Chicago, and possibly this apartment for as long as it took to close this case. She met Hank's eyes and let out a sigh. "Then I'm going to need a favor…. Can you get me an untraceable laptop and a burner phone?"

 **AN: Now you know where she's been, what happened, and more importantly, why she hasn't been in touch the whole time she's been gone. The next chapter will be a good one: lots of one-on-one Linstead interaction!**


	5. Chapter 5

Shortly after the conclusion of her tale, Hank left for work with a promise to return that evening with the laptop and phone. As the door clicked shut behind him, a bowl of cereal and milk appeared over her shoulder.

"Sorry, this is all I have in the house right now." Jay said with a shrug.

"It's fine." Erin said, gratefully accepting the bowl. It had been so long since she'd last eaten, anything would have tasted good. While she focused on her food, Jay took the opportunity to look her over. She looked like she could use a few square meals, as she barely made a bump under the blanket. Her skin was so pale except where it was marred by bruises and the pink hair did nothing to help her appearance. The thin arm lifting the spoon to her mouth was shaky, but since the moment she finished telling her story, it was like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

When she finished, Erin placed her bowl on the coffee table. Looking up, her eyes locked with his but neither person spoke. The awkward silence grew longer and longer before Jay broke it with a sigh. He grabbed her empty cereal bowl and stalked to the kitchen sink. He decided to wash it by hand to give himself a little extra time before facing her again. His head was reeling with the information she had shared.

Over the last few months, his mind had played out a variety of scenarios as to why she had not been in touch. Silly things like her losing everyone's phone numbers, horrible things like her falling back into drugs and alcohol, and gut wrenching things like thinking maybe she never loved him in the first place. Never in a million years would he have come close to imagining the truth. _Now what?_ Knowing he couldn't put off the conversation any longer, he turned with determination only to freeze on the spot. Erin was standing at the edge of the kitchen.

Using the counter for support, Erin approached him slowly with an uncertain look on her face. She could see a myriad of emotions in Jay's eyes even though he was fighting hard to keep his stone cold poker face on. Once she was in front of him, Erin gave in to the desire she'd had since the moment she set foot in New York. With a swift motion she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face into his chest, taking in a big breath that smelled like the comforting scent of Jay. His arms immediately found their home around her.

It could have been 5 minutes or 5 hours for all Jay knew, but he wasn't ready to let her go. Standing there in his kitchen holding her, Jay felt Erin rest more and more of her weight against his body and her breathing evened out. The events of the past day and her injuries must have caught up with her: Erin managed to fall asleep standing up. Careful to not jostle her too much, Jay scooped Erin into his arms bridal style. The stark contrast between the last time he'd carried her and now drove home how much weight she'd lost while away.

Gently, he lowered Erin to the bed. However, when he went to stand, he discovered he was stuck. During the short walk from the kitchen to the bedroom Erin had taken the front of his shirt in a death grip. He tried to gently release her hand but was not having much success when a quiet voice stopped his efforts.

"Please stay," Erin whispered, not even opening her eyes. Knowing he couldn't deny the fact that he wanted to keep her close just as much as she wanted him to stay, Jay kicked off his shoes and joined her on the bed. Erin immediately snuggled back into his chest. The lack of sleep from the night before combined with the feel of Erin in his arms lulled Jay into the best sleep he'd had in months.

Conversation could wait.

 **AN: This is not quite where I saw this chapter going. I really want Jay and Erin to have a good heart-to-heart but what do you say to a person in this type of situation? The next chapter will come once I figure that out!**


	6. Chapter 6

When Erin woke up the next day, the bed was empty and the sheets beside her were cool to the touch. Only the dent in the pillow where Jay's head had been reassured her that she hadn't imagined the previous evening.

The following days fell into a quiet routine. In the morning, Jay would be up before Erin to make coffee and breakfast. While Erin ate in the kitchen, Jay would shower and get ready for the day. Erin would then spend the day on the couch working on the laptop Hank brought her while Jay would spend time reviewing case files at the kitchen bar. At lunch, they would order food in. The two would quietly move around each other in the apartment, never far apart but also never in the same room for long. At the end of his work day, Hank would show up with dinner and stay for a while afterwards. Jay returned to sleeping on the couch, and while Erin was disappointed, she didn't want to upset the quiet comfort that had developed between them.

On the third day, Erin felt ready to tackle the task of bathing. Just the previous afternoon, Will had checked out her stitches and declared while they needed to stay in for at least another week she had healed well enough for a quick shower. As Erin turned away from the linen closet with a fresh towel, Jay handed her a pile of familiar looking clothes. The pile included a few t-shirts, some underwear, and her favorite pair of yoga pants.

Jay's voice was rough when he spoke. "This is everything that was still in the drier when you left."

Immediately, her eyes filled with tears.

"Jay…" she started.

"If it's all the same to you, I'm not ready to talk about that yet."

Jay quickly turned on his heel and walked away, leaving Erin standing in the hallway hugging the pile of clothes to her chest.

On the fifth day, Antonio showed up at the door.

Erin immediately pulled him into a hug. Antonio had always felt like an older brother to her. It wasn't until he showed up that she realized how much she'd missed him.

"It's getting suspicious that you're missing so much work," he explained when Jay asked why he'd come over. "Voight put me 'undercover' until we figure something better out."

By the following Sunday, Erin was officially tired of the small talk and pleasantries with Jay. Erin sat on the couch with the laptop as she had done for the previous seven days, however, this time she was not working. Instead, she was waiting for the opportunity to corner Jay into talking. Hearing the refrigerator open, Erin knew this was her chance. Blocking the doorway to the kitchen, she took a deep breath and gathered her courage.

"Do you hate me because I left?" she blurted out. That wasn't how she planned to start this conversation but now that the words were out there, they hung in the air between them.

Jay paused in his perusal of the contents of the fridge. "Erin, I don't want to talk about this until you're feeling better. "

"Well I'm ready to talk now."

The anger built inside Jay. When he turned to face her, she could see the fire in his eyes along with the sadness.

"Fine!" he shouted, "You want to talk? Start by explaining how you could just walk away. You ripped my heart out Erin, and took it with you. And you never looked back!"

"You ripped my heart out first!" Erin yelled.

Both Erin and Jay were breathing heavily. The staring match that followed was charged with emotion. When she regained control of her breath, Erin spoke quietly. "Everything about our relationship from the very first day of our partnership was about having each other's backs. Even at my lowest, we were still there for each other. Then, in a time when we clearly needed each other, you shut me out. The night you left, the sound of the front door shutting felt like you were shutting the door on us. And then every time I tried to talk to you about it after, nothing. So when the opportunity was forced on me to leave, part of me was relieved to leave all the painful encounters with you behind. But you know what?! Being away didn't make it hurt any less!"

"Erin, it wasn't that I was trying to keep you out, I was unraveling at the seams and just trying to keep all of the ugliness from that time of my life in. Obviously, I did not handle things well the first or even the second time around. That's probably the one good thing that came out of you leaving. Voight forced me to see a psychologist, and I feel like I'm actually getting somewhere this time."

"That's good Jay."

Through his confession, she had slowly gravitated to him. Now that the fight was draining out of her, she felt tired again. Unable to resist the urge, she leaned into his chest drawing strength from him. Jay wrapped his arms around her, holding her close.

"We really screwed this up this time didn't we?" he asked. Erin nodded into his chest.

"Do you think there's any chance of fixing this, fixing us?" As soon as the question was out of his mouth, Jay wished he could reel it back in. But it was too late for that.

"I'm not sure…" Jay felt his heart drop at her words.

"…but I'd like to find out."

With a large sigh of relief, Jay dropped a quick kiss to the top of her head.

"Okay, then." He said.

"Okay, then." She echoed.

 **Author's Note: Hey, sorry for the delay getting this chapter out. I wanted to make sure I did justice to their emotions and kept putting off writing. Just a warning, there's only ONE chapter left.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Not sure what happened to the format earlier… please enjoy!**

"No, absolutely not… There's no way in hell we're doing that!" Jay yelled, pacing behind the couch.

Hank, Antonio, and Erin kept their eyes on him as he paced back and forth.

"There has to be a better way…" Jay started to say, however, he trailed off and continued his frenzied walk. It was clear he was trying to quickly come up with a plan that didn't put Erin in so much danger.

Noticing Jay's pacing picking up speed, Erin moved around the couch so the next time he turned she was in his way. Jay stopped short so he didn't run her over. Without saying anything, she took his hand and led him to the chair he'd been sitting in before Antonio began to detail the plan. Once he sat, instead of relinquishing her contact with him, Erin perched herself on Jay's lap, effectively keeping their connection and preventing Jay from pacing again. Antonio quirked an eyebrow at her before continuing.

"The more we talked about it, the more we realized the only way to lure out Erin's captors is for them to see her. Yes, they initially tried to take her out, but Erin's FBI contacts are fairly sure that her cover was not blown. The fact that another group is working her will definitely catch their attention. With the amount of information Erin's team has been able to put together, as soon as they come after us we'll be able to put them away for a long time. We just need something to pull them in."

Three days later, Erin started to wonder if maybe their plan wasn't going to work. Each day Ruzek acting as her handler would take her out for a potential client. They would go around areas where she was likely to be seen until a "client" was found. The first day it was Atwater, then Olinsky. Tonight she was sitting in a dingy apartment hanging out with Antonio.

Antonio finished shuffling and began dealing cards out to Erin and himself. Poker was a good way to kill time while they waited. As Erin eyed her cards, Antonio took a close look at her. In the few weeks since she had reappeared in Chicago, she had transformed from a skeletal, frightening version of Erin back into her old self, and he would put money on the fact that it was due to more than healing up and eating good food.

"So, what's the deal with you and Halstead?" he asked, breaking the silence.

Erin's eyes shot to his. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, come on. I've spent enough time around the apartment lately. You're always watching each other from across the room. If you're close together, you're touching. Something is up."

Erin rolled her eyes but couldn't stop the blush rising in her cheeks. "I'm not sure, we haven't really talked about it."

"Well, I think something's going on whether you want to admit it or not."

"Antonio…" Erin started to say. She trailed off when she saw that Antonio had gone stiff and still, his right hand instinctively moving to the gun on his waist band. Standing, he drew his weapon and moved toward the door of the apartment, giving Erin a finger wave indicating she should keep talking.

Erin drew her gun as well, positioning herself in safety, but allowing her a line of sight to cover Antonio if needed. Giving an exaggerated sigh, Erin resumed talking while keeping her gun trained on the door. "I just don't know, every time I try to talk to him, he gets mad. But then, just when I've given up hope on the situation, he goes and does something sweet. I don't understand…"

With a crash, the door slammed open.

POP! BANG! Erin ducked behind the doorframe next to her and prepared to return fire. As she peered around the corner she realized she did not have a clear shot due to the now open front door but Antonio was at least partially protected by a wall on his side of the room.

POP! BANG! BANG! One shot from the hallway, and two return fires from Antonio. Erin began to survey her route to Antonio's side to help return fire.

POP! POP! POP! BANG! This time it was three more from the hallway, with one return shot from Antonio. Erin moved stealthily through the room using first the couch, then the arm chair as cover. Reassessing her position, Erin could see out into the hallway, but no person. As she considered her next move she saw exactly who she hoped would hunt her down, the same handler responsible for her stabbing. Aiming, Erin got a shot off before he returned to cover. The bullet tore through his right shoulder, and he dropped his gun.

Advancing quickly, Antonio edged into the hallway and kicked the gun away while scanning the hallway for a second shooter. "CLEAR!" he yelled, holstering his weapon as he saw Jay and Hank enter the hallway. Hank moved to help Antonio while Jay went to check on Erin.

He found her sitting on the floor next to the coffee table. Taking her shaking hands in his, he stooped his head to catch her eye. "Relax, Er. We got him. Let's go home, okay?"

Between the excitement of the bust, the relief that the perpetrator was caught, and the comfort of hearing Jay refer to the apartment as home, Erin slept better that night than she had in ages. The smile on her face when she woke up grew larger when she heard Jay singing slightly off key. And by the smells filling the apartment he was cooking breakfast. After a quick stop in the bathroom to freshen up and grab something from under the sink, Erin entered the kitchen.

Not only was Jay singing, he was also gently swinging his hips back and forth to the music as he cooked eggs on the stove. Coffee, orange juice, bacon, and toast were already out on the bar. Erin slid onto a stool enjoying watching him undetected, but she unable to contain the giggle that escaped her mouth as Jay moved to use the spatula as a microphone. Jay spun around quickly at getting caught, but his smile was as large as hers. "Just another minute and these will be ready too," he told her, returning to cooking.

When the eggs finished, Jay dished some onto each of their plates and plopped onto the stool next to her. They ate in comfortable silence, trading occasional small talk and big smiles until only crumbs were left on their plates. Taking the last sip of his coffee, Jay turned to Erin and asked, "Is there anything you want to do today since you're no longer stuck in the apartment?"

"Well, actually, there was something I hoped you could help me with." Erin got down from the stool and grabbed the box she put on the counter when she came in. "Can you help me dye my hair back?"

Thirty minutes later, Erin had her head hanging into the kitchen sink while Jay used the sprayer to get all of the dye out. Once the water ran clear, he wrapped a fluffy towel around her head and helped her stand upright. Using the corner of the towel to wipe the water off her face, Erin opened her eyes to find Jay just inches away from her. Going up on her tiptoes, Erin pulled Jay's lips to hers, kissing him for the first time in months. Somehow kissing Jay managed to feel familiar and brand new at the same time.

Before things could escalate, Erin's phone began to ring in her pocket. She pulled her lips from Jay's with a groan to check the caller ID.

"Shit, it's my boss. I've got to take this." She slipped out of his arms and out of the room. He heard her answer with a brisk "Lindsay." before the bedroom door clicked shut. Jay turned to grip the counter, hanging his head. This morning had almost made him forget this wasn't her home anymore.

He was still in this position when Erin re-entered the kitchen.

"Jay," she said quietly.

He swung his gaze in her direction.

"They said because of my injuries on this assignment, I'm required to take 6 weeks of paid medical leave."

He turned his body to face her, his expression passive. "Are you going back to New York for that?"

"Why would I? The only thing waiting for me in New York is a dead house plant."

He stepped to be right in front of her. "What happens when the 6 weeks are over?"

"I'm not sure. The one thing I am sure of is from here on out, we figure these things out together."

Jay's smile lit up the room. "Come here," all but growled as he pulled her toward him and into a searing kiss.

Together. Home.

THE END

 **AN: Sorry for the weird formatting. I copy and pasted the chapter the same way as always and everything looked fine on my end until the chapter posted so I'm not sure what went wrong. Hopefully you all enjoyed this story. It has officially been marked as complete since I do not plan to write any more on this plot. Stay tuned for my next Linstead story, hopefully starting in May.**


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